Stoned, vengeful, pointless, and so very good. Takes the Real Estate/Yuck garage band movement and sends it crashing down to Earth in an unglorious, depressive implosion. Sinister, pessimistic, and ultimately tragic, Cloud Nothing's Attack On Memory is a triumph.

On every song of this album I can hear all of the untapped potential and greatness that this band is capable of and so close to reaching with Attack On Memory, but they fall just short and it in turn keeps me from liking the album as much as I feel like I could

Ever aware of their adroit pop-punk tunefulness, and also perhaps the limitations that can come with it -- hence the employment of band-in-a-room optimizer Steve Albini for some extra beef-up, the piano-laced slow-burn ponderer and prolonged Wipers worship serving as an initiatory proving ground, the angsty Milo Aukerman-esque vox shredded into hoarseness and beyond. Revel in crestfallen sonic turbulence and a 'separated' blitzkrieg instrumental they may, but man can they clean up nice too: "Fall In", "Stay Useless", "Our Plans", and "Cut You" make for an eminent foursome that's equal parts approachable and invigorating. As for the angst: "I thought I would be more than this", says the 20-year old kickin' it with Albini.

So simplistic and so raw, truly a great rock album. With Steve Albini handling production Cloud Nothings take the time to write some great post-hardcore influenced rock songs. From the pop structures Stay Useless to the epic crescendo of Wasted Days this album has something for everyone.